GreaseBags – Eco-Friendly Grease Disposal

GreaseBags inventor Latangela Newsome loves to cook, but hates cleaning up the grease that inevitably comes from cooking. Whether you're cooking a burger in a pan, chicken in the oven, or bacon, there will be grease (especially with bacon). Getting rid of the grease is messy and inconvenient – that's where GreaseBags come in.

They're a simple solution to a common problem. Getting rid of grease down the drain is not a good idea. Over time, it can seriously clog drains, resulting in messy and sometimes expensive repairs. Dumping it in the trash brings smells and flies. Getting rid of grease outside has a whole host of concerns.

Restaurants and food service establishments have services that pick up their used grease and dispose it or re-use it in an environmentally responsible way. Most homeowners don't have the cash or volume of grease to warrant professional grease disposal, so what's a home chef to do?

Latangela wants you to buy her GreaseBags. All you need to do is pour your grease into the bag and either dispose of the bag or add it to the compost heap. It eliminates the worry of clogged drains and the smell. It's a good idea and a simple, inexpensive solution to a common problem.

My Take on GreaseBags

I do all the cooking in our home and we have our fair share of grease. I keep a cup of bacon grease in the butter dish for adding a little flavor when cooking, but that cup is only a small fraction of the grease my family generates. When we have a fish fry or just have left over grease from a chicken or other meat, there are issues with disposal.

Sometimes we mix a little grease into the dog's kibble (she loves that), but the old girl can't eat everything we generate – she'd die. I try not to get any grease in the drain since we are on a septic system and it could cause complications.

I used to dump grease in the yard, but it attracted too many raccoons. Now, I usually keep an empty can lying around to pour grease in and chuck it in the trash when it hardens. It can get smelly though. The idea of composting grease never occurred to me until I started doing some research on GreaseBags. I have a compost heap and I like to compost as much as I can, so for that reason, I am in.

Will Sharks Grease Latangela's Palms and Invest?

On the surface, GreaseBags seems like a logical, eco-friendly, simple and affordable solution to a common problem. I think the Sharks have a problem with the product though, for three of reasons.

First, there are a bunch of other similar products on Amazon. While Latangela has a new twist on the disposal solution, other solutions exist, so she needs to differentiate herself. Second, she just completed an unsuccessful Kickstarter campaign on December 23, 2016 – just a few weeks before her air date. She likely taped her segment in the summer of 2016 and if she got a deal, she wouldn't necessarily need to do a Kickstarter. Third, she is only offering her product on a “pre-order” basis.

These three points indicate no deal for GreaseBags. Had she done a deal with a Shark, Latangela would have product to sell on her air date and wouldn't need to do a Kickstarter. I think the Sharks pass on this one. Latangela's best hope is she resonates with the audience and gets enough pre-orders to get into production. While she may not snag a Shark, she may be able to leverage the Shark Tank Effect to her advantage. Good luck, Latangela.

Entrepreneur, auteur, raconteur. Rob Merlino is a blogger and writer who enjoys the Shark Tank TV show and Hot Dogs. A father of five who freelances in a variety of publications, Rob has a stable of websites including Shark Tank Blog, Hot Dog Stories, Rob Merlino.com and more.

First let me say that I don’t understand why you have to pour SCOULDING HOT GREASE into the bag in the first place? Is everyone that impatient that they can’t wait for it to cool down? DUH I always wait before pouring hot grease into my glass jars anyway or they’ll break!! I love & admire every shark on “Shark Tank”, with the exception of “The Cubes” as he calls himself, but you missed the mark on this one! Even healthy living folks cook bacon once in awhile for themselves and guests. And not every eco-friendly family is vegan by no means. Great idea, great product, keep running with it and you will succeed! Good Luck in your future

Just watchedthe show “dvr”I’m way behind. But there’s a simple solution to the heat concern for the grease. Sell a starter pack that includes a cooling tin. I have one cause my grandma had one. Plus my wife likes to use bacon grease in some of her recipes. You could have different designs for different kitchens colors. Maybe a couple sizes options on the tin would be good also for different oils types. Hey my 2 cents.